Padlock opener



July 31, 1'956 M. REASER HAM/5, Kif/5CH, F0575@ t ZIA/ems United States Patent PADLOCK OPENER Marshall Reaser, Alhambra, Calif.

Application February 19, 1954, Serial No. 411,331

2 Claims. (Cl. 81-3) The present invention relates to a new and improved padlock opener.

More specifically, the instant invention relates to va new and improved construction which can readily be used to open virtually any size, shape, or type of padlock, with a minimum of diiculty. It is, therefore, an object of the instant invention to create a new and improved type of padlock opener of this type. The necessity for a good, efficient padlock opener is rather surprising when one considers that padlocks have been in use for a great many years and are found almost universally throughout the world.

The herein described invention is primarily designed to be used by tire ghters in opening padlocks quite rapidly and frequently under conditions of severe strain, such as, for example, adverse weather conditions. A great many res are frequently found within garages and various small industrial buildings which are locked by a common hasp and padlock arrangement. To a surprising extent, these lires break out and gather increased momentum or strength in the dead of night, and seemingly during all sorts of storms, whether in rain, snow, or wind. It is an absolute necessity, if these fires are to be controlled without serious damage, that tire fighters can get at them with a minimum of time and difficulty. The herein described invention is primarily intended for use in Iaccomplishing this purpose. The invention as described is extremely simple, contains few operating parts, and can.

readily be adjusted with a minimum of diticulty so as to open virtually any type of padlock.

The necessity for opening padlocks is, of course, not conned to re. Police officials, locksmiths, and the like, encounter the same problem of how to open stubborn padlocks with a minimum of diiculty. The prior procedures used in accomplishing this broad objective have varied from the use of hammers, crow bars, cold chisels, bolt cutters, and seemingly an endless variety of other common tools adapted to this specic purpose as the contingencies of the situation require. Because none of these tools are specifically designed to remove padlocks, and because none of them are especially adapted for such purpose, their efficiency for the purpose described has been extremely low. This etlciency is particularly low in view of the fact that padlocks are as a class made out of very high quality steel, and are designed to be diiiicult to open in any but the intended manner.

An object of the instant disclosure is to teach the construction of a new padlock opener employing two lever arms secured loosely together, one of these arms carrying an adjustable fulcrum, and both of these arms carrying adjacent to this fulcum means for engaging the operative parts of a padlock. A more specific object of the invention is to create a construction as described wherein each of the lever arms adjacent to the adjustable fulcrum carries a plurality of means adapted to engage the operative parts of a padlock. Another and even more specific object is to create a construction of the class described wherein the adjustable fulcrum comprises a threaded member mounted so as to project through one of said lever arms to abut against the other of said lever arms.

Further objects of the instant invention, as well as the advantages of it, will be more fully apparent from the balance of this specification, including the accompanying claims and the appended drawings, in which:

Fig. l shows a side view of a padlock opener of the invention during the use of this padlock opener; and

Fig. 2 shows an end view taken in the direction of arrow 2 in Fig. 1.

The extreme simplicity of the padlock opener of the invention is at once apparent upon examination of the drawings. It is seen that this padlock opener consists of lever arms 1@ and 11, the lever arm 10 being provided with an internally threaded bore 12 which is adapted to contain a threaded member 14 having a handle 15 on a side 16 of this lever arm 10. An end 17 of the threaded member 14 on the side 18 of the arm 10 removed from the side 16 may be rounded, if desired. During the normal operation of the device, this end 17 projects within a rounded depression 19 formed within the side 20 of the lever arm 11 adjacent to the side 18 of lever arm 10. In this construction, it is readily seen that the end 17 acts as a fulcrum for the second lever arm 11 when this lever arm is moved from the position shown in Fig. l to the position shown in phantom in this figure. This motion is normally carried out when a padlock 21 is placed so that the main body portion 22 of this lock is fitted within a notch 23 formed on the side 16 of the lever arm 1t) adjacent to an end 24 of this lever arm, and when the shackle of the lock 21 is fitted within a notch 25 formed adjacent to the end 26 of the lever arm 11. As is noted, the notch 25 contains an upstanding edge lip 27 serving to hold the shackle 32 securely within the notch 25.

In using the device, the handle 15 is turned so as to adjust the end 17 against the lever arm 11 so that the various operative parts are assembled as shown, and the lever arms 1t) and 11 are brought together in the obvious manner, much yas if they were the handles on a common pair of pruning shears. As they are brought together, an extreme amount of force is exerted between the shackle 32 and the main body 22 of the padlock 21, causing the shackle 32 to be disengaged from the body 22. Inasmuch as the precise method of disengagement will vary slightly with the type of padlock construction involved, it is not deemed necessary to go into this in detail. The herein described and disclosed invention can be successfully used with virtually any type of padlock.

The lever arms 10 and 11 are secured together by fasteners 28 secured upon opposite sides of these lever arms, the fasteners 28 being preferably secured by means of a pivot such as the pivot 29 projecting from the arm 10. This pivot may conveniently comprise a bolt or other similar construction. The lever arm 11 is held with respect to the fasteners 2S by means of another pivot 30 projecting through opposite sides of this lever arm 11 through slots 31 formed within the fasteners 28. Because of this slot construction, the lever arm 11 can be moved with respect to the lever arm 10 substantially in any manner desired. Further, the fasteners 28 prevent any hindrance to the movement of the lever arms 10 and 11 during the use of the construction shown because of the pivots 29 and 30 and the slots 31.

The entire construction shown is, of course, formed of extremely strong metal, such as, for example, various high strength steel alloys. Further, various knurled handles and the like can be placed upon the lever arms 10 and 11 so as to aid in using the construction shown, and various guards around these lever arms can be placed between these lever arms so as to prevent one using the device from bringing these lever arms together quite rapidly with undesirably effect on the hands of the user. Instead of such guards, the lever arms 10 and 11 may be formed in an annular configuration so that the ends of these lever. armsnorrnally engaging'| the hands of the. in.- dividual, are spaced1 apartfrom one another. The. conf struction= shown mayY be. readily. stored by merely bringing; the lever. arms. 10Yand 1.1 against one another, While pivoting.. the fasteners: 28- so that they lie immediately adjacent to these lever,k arms. If desired, the threaded member 14. canbefsecuredto either of the lever arms or to the fasteners 28' by means of a common cord so that it may be completely-l removed from the lever arm 10 in order that the entire device can be stored within a, minimum. amount of. space. Spring, clips attached to either. of the4 lever arms may be usedto hold this threaded member whenthe device .isdisassembled for storage.

rBhose skilled in the art. will realize that the herein describedand'disclosed invention-is extremely simple and yetis. extremely. effectivefor. the. purpose described. Be

cause. of thiseffectiveness. andhecause of this simplicity, theinvention marks asubstantial improvement over the prior, art. Obviously, anumberof further minor modi.- eations,. besidesthose described above, may be made within'the scope of the instant invention Without departing.from.the essential teachings thereof. As an example:

of suchf modifications, the end 17 may be rounded, and may merely projectaganst a flat surface on the side 20 of the lever arm 11. Such .minor modifications. are to be consideredas part. of the inventive concept insofar as they are'deined by. the appended claims.

The. wordsv upper and lower refer to the position, ofthe parts onthesinglesheetiofdrawings and have no; other. significance;

I claim as my invention:

l. A new and useful tool for forcibly opening a locked padlock, which comprises: a first lever arm having its upper end so formed as to engage the body of the padlock, the lower portion of said irst lever arm forming a rst handle which is so formed as to be engageable by the hand of a user; a second lever'. arm having a notch in its upper end so formed as to` engage the shackle of the padlock, the lowerportioni of saidvsecond arm forming a handle which is so formed as tov be engageable by the hand of a usen-and a threadedmember carried in a screw-threaded. hole. in said rst member; and projecting from said first member in a direction which enables one end of said threaded' member toengage a rounded depression in said second member, said threaded member acting as a fulcrum between said first and second members.

2., A@ device assett forthr in claim l, including.' means for permanently interconnecting said lrst-r and second. leven".l arms-A andi disposed therebetweenbelow said 'threaded= member, said means being pivotally connected.-

to both.- of saidy arms.

Referencestedin the le of'this patent UNITED STATESI PATENTS 797,'541' Walker Aug. l5; 1905 l,0l15,32l`v Pilliner Nov. 26, 1912` 1',2"1`9;l`60 Rosenblatt Mar. 13, 1917 1,494,755 Nelson May 20, 1924 2;.6432565 Mount' June 30, 1953 

